On the banks of many rivers, streams and streams in densethickets each able to gather up a certain number of mollusks in shells. But a lot of questions arise about edibility, their usefulness ... and in general - what is river mussels? How to cook them so as not to poison themselves and get pleasure from such an unusual dish?
River mussels: would not be poisoned ...
The main food of river mussels arenumerous microorganisms in all their diversity. Thus, these mollusks serve as a kind of filter that purifies the native body of water. It is believed that the presence of mussels in the river indicates a certain purity of its waters. However, for safety, it is recommended to refrain from eating these mollusks if the water in their habitat seems suspicious in appearance, color, smell.
Edible?
Edible are almost any river mussels.You can eat and those who were collected on the river, and those whose habitat is a swamp, and those who live in the lake - the main thing is that the water in the reservoir was fresh and clean. And another prerequisite: deciding to eat these mollusks, you should precisely and strictly adhere to the technology of their preparation, because (like living natural filters) river mussels accumulate a lot of unpleasant and fairly harmful substances for the body. Thus, improper preparation of river mussels can lead to tragic consequences.
Preliminary preparation of the product
Mussels can be harvested independentlybe purchased frozen (cleaned and unpeeled). Frozen food should be thawed. Mussels should be thoroughly washed, and those that are in the shell, cleaned of dirt, sand, debris in all grooves, should be removed at the junction of the valves.
By the way, all the shells that did not open after the primary heat treatment should be thrown out without regret - the product inside is still spoiled.
When processing shells that have opened after thermal “procedures” (boiling, frying, etc.), the internal organs of the mollusk are usually removed, although there are lovers who consume this delicacy entirely.
All for a picnic!
Imagine that while outdoor recreation suddenlyRiver mussels were discovered. How to cook them easy, safe and tasty? Washed, garbage-cleaned mollusks should be soaked in a mixture of water, vinegar (the latter should be 2 times more) and a decent amount of salt. This marinade will destroy the smell of mud and harmful microorganisms. After 20-30 minutes, you can start cooking - fry them on a grate over a fire. Fried opened mussels are lightly sprinkled with oil and salted. Well, if in a hiking backpack or picnic basket there is horseradish "Wasabi" and a couple of bunches of any greenery - this is the perfect seasoning for such a dish.
Mussel soup
This soup is good to cook in nature fromfreshly caught mollusks - if you pour them in a hot sunny place, in about 10 minutes they will open slightly. It remains to insert the knife in the sash, turn and open the sink. Cut the leg of the mussel - it is the biggest delicacy. Than and remarkable both sea and river mussels. How to cook further is no longer a question. Prepared meat should be washed at least three times in clean water. Of the cleaned mussels fillets, strong broth is brewed, where one part of mollusks accounts for 2 parts of water. You can add any spices, and preferably more. The broth should boil for at least 20 minutes so that the heat kills all possible pests and parasites. They say such a soup causes a sharp surge of vitality.
Baked River Mussels
There are many options for cooking mussels.river. Cooking recipes vary both in processing methods and in the quality of purchased raw materials - mussels can be used peeled or not, small and medium ones. However, enough of the lyrics, it's time to work.
Take a couple of pieces of shallots, wash, finely chop. Peel and squeeze a couple of cloves of garlic, parmesan cheese (100 g), grate, finely chop a bunch of parsley.
In a deep pan (always with a thick bottom)boil water, pour a glass of dry white wine, add shredded onions and lower the mussels. Boil at maximum heat for about 5 minutes under the lid, then remove, remove one (!) Sash from all opened shells.
In a separate bowl, mix the prepared cheese,garlic, parsley, a third of a spoonful of chili pepper powder and a pound of white breadcrumbs, pour in 3 dessert spoons of olive oil and mix thoroughly.
Place the mussels on the baking tray with the sink down, pour each of them into the mixture and put them in the oven for 15 minutes heated to 200 ° C
Braised River Mussels
Here are cleaned and frozen, and inshells river mussels. How to cook them in sauce? We will now pay special attention to this issue. Boil a kilogram of mussels in salted water, drain, put in a frying pan, pour a glass of white wine, “rusks” (can be replaced with pink or cider) and simmer for about 10 minutes.
Сельдерей, некрупную луковицу, свежие розмарин и Thyme finely chopped. Fry celery and onion until transparent in vegetable oil (preferably olive oil), then add chopped greens to the same place and stew for another 2-3 minutes.
Grind two egg yolks with a glass of sour cream andpour in mussels, then add ready fried, a quarter of a teaspoon of red hot pepper, salt to taste, saffron and mix thoroughly. Next, you need to simmer the dish on low heat until thickened, stirring regularly and not allowing the dish to boil.
These mussels with sauce are well suited to fried potatoes.
